“He died here, at the place that gave me everything and then took it all away. He died loving me. He died knowing the truth about what he did would come out, knowing that was okay. It was right.” (Jessica Goodman, The Counselors) 

With loads of teen girl drama, murder, and family secrets, Jessica Goodman captures the wonders of a perfect summer camp and the horrors creeping around it throughout her novel The Counselors. We are taken on a journey of fallen friendships and secrets that could burn a building down; this novel is an easy read that everyone will love. 

Summary: 

The story is based at Camp Alpine Lake, an upscale summer camp in Vermont. We follow Goldie Easton, a counselor with emotional attachments to the camp. Having survived a terrible year at home, she’s looking forward to putting her past behind her and reuniting with her two best friends, Ava and Imogen. When one of the townies is discovered dead under suspicious circumstances, Goldie starts to realize that there is more to the story than she thought. As secrets begin to unravel, she finds herself involved in a tangle of lies and hidden truths about camp, the place she once loved. Some truths hit closer to home than she could have ever imagined. The novel is a combination of friendship, love, and mystery with smaller themes of class, secrets, and loyalty.

Review:

As someone who is new to Goodman’s writing style, I was immersed in a lot of detail throughout the story. It really felt like I was there. But, I would keep in mind that the chapters were hard to follow as they would go back to the past and reset to the present. 

Goldie and her two best friends, Ava and Imogen, go through what it means to be a teenage girl. With the family drama and school drama feeding into their attitudes, it almost feels like you are a part of it. I feel like all three of them went through some noticeable growth by themselves and grew together. 

This novel has a combination of multiple themes. Some that were prominent were friendship, love, and loyalty. Towards the middle and end, Goldie is hit with the reality of her best friend, the camp, and her first love betraying her. It takes her some time, but Goodman merges them all together in the best way possible. 

I do feel as though the plot was kind of predicting. It is like any normal mystery book where someone who seems to be the “good guy” turns out to be the villain. If there would have been more to the story, that would have really sold this book. 

Jessica Goodman does an amazing job at describing what an upper-class summer camp was like. It was an easy read with a couple twists and turns. 

Although this was a great book, it only really got interesting towards the end. This wasn’t a book that I was dying to read everyday. 

Overall, I was thoroughly impressed by the book. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants an easy read with a mix of money and mystery. If you like these books, I would also check out The Woman Who Lied by Claire Douglas. 

I would give this book: 📚📚📚- an expertly crafted thriller! (3/5)

Love, Liya

GFB Ambassador